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Failure is instructive. The person who really thinks learns quite as much from his failures as from his successes.
-John Dewey
Women in Science, a Lifetime of Commitment and Unfaltering Determination
Article by 7th grade students Leslie Paulino and Emily Kerman
Contrary to popular belief, women have been in the field of science for over 4000 years. On March 12, 2009 CSS had the first in a series of CSS Diversity Lecture Series. This speaker series is intended to supplement the curriculum by exposing the student body to leaders in their field within our community as means of stimulating the future generations to aspire to become leaders as well. This assembly focused on women in science.
Dr. Gerda Lerner said, “If bringing women into science-half the human race-into the center of historical inquiry poses a formidable challenge to historical scholarship, it also offers sustaining energy and a source of strength.”
The first part of the assembly presented Women in Science of the past presented by Women in Science of the future. Angelis Martinez, Batia Katz, Rita Kumar, Kiambra Griffin, Kalina Paunovoska, Annette Anderson, Tachira Pichardo, and Katherine Li created PowerPoints and taught the student body of CSS about Marie Curie, Mary Douglas Nicol Leakey, Margret Rosalind Franklin, Jane Goodall, and Rachel Carson. If it was not for all these women, women today would not be able to make a difference in the scientific community.
Next, a panel of Women in Science of Today discussed their experiences and challenges of being and becoming a woman in science, Virginia Kornish, a Profesor of Chemistry at Columbia University, Rita Upmacias a Professor of Pathology at Cornell University, Nilda Mesa, and environmental steward. “I think this assembly had a great effect on the students of CSS, especially on the girls. These women who volunteered to tell us about their pathway to success must have inspired many young women out there to follow their dreams, no matter what trials they face on the way,” said seventh grade student Angelis Martinez.
In conclusion, the assembly was a success, inspiring many students and encouraging the idea that women can and will be in science.
